Charlotte's first mission after being admitted into the Caldera was to find a den. The ground had become frozen and hard - much too difficult to dig through - so she was resigned to choosing an abandoned home until spring, rot with spider webs and bones. She lay there that first night and gently nipped at her seemingly infected wounds. It was a painful practice, but she thought it would help with the unsightly oozing though it truly did nothing more than irritating and inflaming the skin around the scabs. Frustrated and throbbing from head to tail, Charlotte lay back and sigh, wishing for sleep.
Finley had told her about the new recruit, mentioning that she might need a consultation with the pack's resident healthcare provider. Raven didn't have a lot of free time lately, though at the first opportunity to steal away from the den—"Be back in thirty, I promise!"—the Gamma headed out to stretch her legs, drop by the badger den to check on her supplies and then, of course, seek out the new member in need of healing.
It didn't take long to find her; the young medicine woman just followed the telltale scent of infected wounds. "Hi there," she greeted softly as she strode up to the prostrate stranger. Raven tried not to loom over her even as she made a quick visual assessment. "I'm Raven. My Aunt Flea said you could probably use a medic." The implication was clear, her lips twitching into a cordial smile as she awaited a response.
Charlotte was startled for a moment, what with the introduction of another during such a humiliating activity, but she quickly regained her composure and smiled at the obisidan femme. Hi there
, she cooed, I'm Charlotte.
Then, standing and turning so that the worst of her wounds were in full view, she made another quiet response, A little help couldn't hurt, actually.
"Nice to meet you, Charlotte," the Gamma said, then lapsed into studious silence as the other she-wolf shifted her weight to make her wounds more accessible. Raven immediately moved closer and inspected them. She winced sympathetically before pausing to consider her options. If she'd had the time, she would've cleaned the wounds, then made and applied a poultice to each instance of broken skin, as well as offered the woman some greens that would help fight infection.
But the clock was ticking, so Raven would have to skip the middle step and hope Charlotte was healthy enough to heal mostly on her own, with just a little bit of help from her. "I have some plants that'll help you fight infection. Can you follow me to my medicine stash? I'll also clean them there, if that's okay with you." She paused, looking at the newcomer's face to see if all that would work for her.
Charlotte allowed Raven's scan of her wounds without question. Of course
, she told her as she made her way to her feet and prepared to follow the medic from the den. What are you going to do to me?
she asked, curious and yet open to whatever Raven would propose. It's not like she had much room to deny any treatment anyway, but a bit of information would certainly ease her nerves.
Raven laughed lightly at Charlotte's phrasing—ignoring a twinge when it briefly reminded her of something Whip had once said—though she was quick to reassure her even as they walked together in the direction of the badger den near the edge of the rendezvous site. "If I had the time, I would not just thoroughly clean them for you but also make poultices. Unfortunately, I can't be away from the puppies for that long, so I'm going to give you a very perfunctory cleanse and then essentially give you some disinfectants in plant form," the medic explained.
Upon reaching their destination, the Gamma motioned for Charlotte to take a seat and make herself comfortable. "Tell me if I'm hurting you," she said before getting down to business, sweeping each instance of broken skin with her tongue to remove dirt and debris. It was perhaps a strange and intimate business but Raven did it with utmost detached professionalism, keeping an eye and ear out for any signs of her patient's discomfort.
Despite the stinging of Raven's tongue against her wounds, Charlotte remained silent with no emotional marker but a dopey grin wiped across her maw. She sat perfectly still and allowed the procedure, no matter the discomfort. A sort of desensitization had been awaken within her after her debacle, so it wasn't difficult for her to bear the temporary pain. Why did you choose to become a medic?
Charlotte asked to break the nerve-wracking silence which had grown in the passing moments.
Charlotte raised no complaints and didn't appear to be in pain, so Raven quickly finished her task and then withdrew, licking her chops to get rid of the metallic taste in her mouth. She pondered her patient's question, then shrugged lightly and admitted, "I'm not really sure. My sister, Wifi, was a naturalist and I think that sort of sparked my interest in plants. It then developed naturally from there.
Here," she said in the next breath, moving to fetch a few dried leaves from inside the badger den. She set them gently at Charlotte's feet. "Just chew and swallow. They don't taste very good but they'll help you fight infection. I might recommend a stop at the caldera or at least the nearest puddle afterward," Raven recommended with a twitch of her lips.
Oh, that's interesting. I have a sister, but she left to found her own pack with her family. We weren't very close, but still, I miss her every now and then.
Charlotte's smile weakened at the corners but remained high. She then bent down and took in the herbs, noting their distinctly bitter taste. Thank you
, Charlotte whispered as she sauntered toward the entryway. There was a slight crack in her voice and a sudden ache in her chest, though she remained composed in the low light.
"You're welcome," Raven answered automatically, the other wolf's sudden change in pitch only registering with her a few seconds later. "Do you mind if I ask what happened?" she wondered aloud. "You don't have to tell me," she was quick to add, just in case Charlotte didn't want to talk about it.
As soon as she saw the shadow pass behind the woman's eyes, the medic shook her head. "Never mind," she said with a kind smile. "You're all set," she declared in the next breath, "and I have to get back to the pups. But please feel free to call for me if you need anything. I'll see you later, Charlotte." With a parting nudge, the Gamma departed toward the den.